


Book One: The Knights of Alicante

by Vearth



Series: Legends of Idris [1]
Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Dragons, M/M, Magic, it's a bit Clace-y too
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-17
Updated: 2017-11-16
Packaged: 2019-02-03 10:51:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12746859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vearth/pseuds/Vearth
Summary: Every seven years the peace in the kingdom of Idris has to be bought with a human sacrifice to the Great Dragon. Jace and Alec grow up knowing that it could hit anyone and they think they can live with this - until they hear the name of this year's sacrifice..





	Book One: The Knights of Alicante

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kingoriginal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kingoriginal/gifts).



> This is the first part of a series I'm planning to write for my lovely, beautiful Andy, because she deserves not only more Jalec fanfiction but also epic fantasy, dragons and magic. I love you so very much!! Happy birthday, sweetie <3

It was the third time Jace witnessed the procession, although he barely remembered the first time he had seen it. It only took place every seven years and he was twenty-one now, and as such one of the youngest knights in the Queen’s guard at the court of Alicante. It was something he took pride in; especially because there was little else he could be proud of. He had grown up an orphan, son to parents nobody knew or remembered, and therefore had no family name to bring honor too and no footsteps to follow in. Fate had not entirely abandoned him, however, for he had not ended up a beggar child in the streets but been taken in by Sir Michael, a kind and noble knight of the court, at the age of five. Sir Michael had raised him as one of his own, teaching him the duties and vices of a knight and nurturing Jace’s wish to one day become a protector of the royal family as well.

Seven years ago, upon turning fourteen this wish had been granted to him when he had been chosen as Sir Robert’s squire. Around that time Jace had last stood in the very spot he was in now, letting his eyes wander over the guests that arrived in the Great Hall, bringing with them ornate chests filled with wondrous gifts and a whole throng of servants carrying lances and banners embroidered with the Morgenstern sigil. The family was led by Lord Valentine, whose wife was said to have passed away years ago. Before her death she had given him two children: a son named Jonathan and a daughter, the beautiful Lady Clarissa. Jace was craning his neck to get a peek of her, but her face and hair were covered by a silken shawl of the same creamy white color as her dress.

A soft nudge to his side reminded Jace of who and where he was. He was a knight of the court now and as such expected to stand still and behave, not wiggle around desperately trying to catch a glimpse of the strange visitors like some peasant boy. He straightened his back and tore his eyes away from the lady with some effort, looking at the person who had so subtly reprimanded him. Alexander, Sir Robert’s real son and Jace’s closest friend, stood still like a marble statue, staring ahead at the procession in perfect stasis. If he was excited or curious about the occasion his face did not betray it.  
“She looks like a foreign princess, does she not?” Jace whispered and Alec finally broke his composure to side-eye him.  
“Be quiet,” was all he said in response, but Jace smiled to himself. He pressed his lips together tightly, however, when he caught the guard commander’s scolding look from across the hall. Hodge was not to be jested with.

Lord Valentine was the first to bow to the Queen, followed by the Lady Clarissa and finally his son, Jonathan. Jonathan was a handsome young man – Jace assumed they were around the same age – who could have been the image of a prince or king from the Old Tales, had he not had an aura of _darkness_ around him that cloaked him like the milky veil did his sister’s face. Jace couldn’t put his finger on it but there was something _unnatural_ about him: the way he moved as if he was injured on several limbs or how he looked around like a wolf seeking out its next prey. He looked in Jace’s direction and for a split second their eyes met. A cold chill took hold of Jace’s body, sending a shiver through his limbs. Jonathan’s eyes were black like coals. The feeling passed as quickly as it had come but it left Jace with a gnawing dread in his chest that wouldn’t fade until long after the procession had ended.

* * *

“Wait up!” Jace called out once the hall had cleared and sped up his steps to catch up with Alec. Behind them servants were buzzing about, hurrying to clean up the hall and prepare it for tonight’s feast. Like Jace, Alec wore the traditional clothes of the knights of Alicante, mostly held in black with only a few silver clasps and the Queen’s sigil embroidered onto their chests and capes to lighten it up, like stars on a particularly dark night sky. Jace remembered a time when those garments had looked ridiculous on both of them, far too long and wide for their skinny bodies, but by now they both had grown to fill them nicely. In jest Alec occasionally reminded Jace that his cape had needed shortening, however, rejoicing in the fact that he had grown to be a good few inches taller than him.

“We are not supposed to speak during these events, Jace,” Alec reminded him but Jace just waved his hand at him.  
“Nobody but you heard me. As if anyone would pay attention to us when a lady like Clarissa is in the room.” Jace threw a quick look over his shoulder to make sure no chatty servant was listening in on their conversation. He was not the most avid follower of rules but even he knew that talk like that of a high-born lady could lead to trouble. “She is stunning, is she not?”  
“You have not even seen her face,” Alec protested. “She could be hideous,” he added with a whisper, as if he knew how blasphemous a statement it was. Jace shook his head.  
“Never! I can tell when a lady is fair by the way she moves and curtsies. She has this aura of purity about her, like an angel.. or a fairy. There is no way she is hideous.”

Jace lowered his voice once more before he continued. “Unlike her brother,” he said, curious to see if Alec had the same impression of Jonathan.  
“You cannot speak of them like this,” Alec scolded him, a hint of red rising in his cheeks. Jace couldn’t tell if it was from anger or embarrassment. Alec had always cared more about etiquette and rules than him and some days it seemed Jace was his greatest source of frustration.  
“Well I would hardly do so to their faces - although I would not say no to an opportunity to tell the Lady Clarissa just _how_ _lovely_ she is. Perhaps in lyrical form?” Alec rolled his eyes and chose not to dignify Jace’s nonsense with an answer. That did not stop Jace from further concocting his speculations about the Morgenstern family, though.  
“Something is definitely wrong with her brother,” he insisted. “Have you seen his eyes? They were black as pitch. Do you think it might be the connection to the dragon?” At this Alec stopped dead in his tracks and turned to face him.  
“Jace! Do not speak of that! It is bad luck and you know it,” he said, more serious than before.

A small smile spread on Jace’s lips, his amusement barely contained. “Those are old wives’ tales, Alec. Speaking of it does not make you more likely to be chosen,” he said confidently.  
Everyone knew that the sacrifices were chosen by some ancient magic, even if nobody really understood it. The name of the sacrifice was always revealed by _the Oracle_ precisely three days before the sacrifice had to take place every seven years, as it had done for the past 180 years, ever since the dragon had been bound to the Morgenstern family. It was a terrible pact that had terrorized and protected the kingdom of Idris in equal measure since _Magnus the Great_ had forged it to save Idris from complete destruction when the dragon attacked almost two centuries ago.

“You don’t know that for certain,” Alec said with a small pout. Jace could tell that he was uncomfortable talking about it, but frankly, there weren’t many topics Alec wasn’t to _some_ extent uncomfortable discussing.  
“As I was saying,” Jace continued, ignoring his friend’s concerns, “he is _strange_ ; and I would bet all the money I don’t have that it is due to the dragon. Nobody really knows how this family deals with it, do they? All we know is that they are damned to ensure the sacrifice is given or else we’re all doomed.”

Jace had never given much thought to the Morgenstern family although every child in the kingdom knew their story. About 180 years ago when the Great Dragon had come from the _Otherlands_ and attacked the people of Idris with fire and flame it had been their ancestor who, together with the magic of a warlock, had managed to defeat the dragon by enslaving it to his will. Of course dragons were creatures of magic too and so all the warlock’s magic had been enough to create was a vulnerable pact that was both a curse and a blessing to the Morgenstern family. The dragon would not attack Idris again and its mere presence in the kingdom - he was said to live in the large caves to the east, right by the coast, but nobody knew for sure, as nobody had ever returned from exploring them - kept enemies of the crown from waging war against them in fear of waking the serpent. In turn, every seven years the dragon’s rage over being imprisoned like that had to be soothed with a human sacrifice, provided by the Morgenstern family. Their prize for dutifully offering these was the certainty that neither of their blood would ever be chosen as sacrifice. As a consequence, however, they were feared and shunned by most, never truly welcome at any court or hearth as they were seen as harbingers of evil.

Whenever the time for the sacrifice came the Queen of Alicante invited the current head of the Morgenstern family to court and allowed him and his entourage to stay until the bloody deed was done. They were almost treated like royal guests, mostly because the people of Alicante were too afraid to disrespect them. Now that Jace had seen Clarissa and her brother he wondered for the first time how it must be to grow up with this burden. Did they have any friends? Where did they live? Did they see the dragon in the years that lay between the sacrifices or was he just a dark shadow cast over their lives, like he was for the rest of them?

“I know what you mean,” said Alec, shrugging lightly. “He was walking funny.”  
“I knew I didn’t imagine that! He was-” Jace was cut short when a figure broke out of the shadows at the wall and walked over to them. It was Hodge.  
“What did you not imagine? The lesson I gave you on how to behave in front of the Queen and her court?” he said, not unkindly but with an undeniable edge to his voice.  
“I was just making Alec aware of the Lady Clarissa’s beautiful gown,” Jace said without turning red. He saw Alec putting a hand over his eyes behind Hodge’s back.  
“I doubt Alec is interested in the Lady Clarissa, _or_ her gown,” Hodge replied, used to Jace’s jests. “Do not test my patience, Jace. Or I will make you do the work of a squire again.”  
Jace bit back the comment that lay on the tip of his tongue. Hodge was not as strict as he pretended to be, but it could be dangerous to test his limits. “Forgive me,” he said instead. “I will behave better next time I cross paths with our guests.”  
Hodge made a face that was hard to read. “I will count on it. Now go and prepare for tonight’s feast.”

* * *

When evening came the hall had been lined with long tables set with wine goblets and silver plates for a considerable amount of guests. It was lit by hundreds of candles in candelabras hanging from the ceiling or standing in the corners and on the tables. The walls were decorated with banners in the Queen’s colors, her sigil displayed on all of them. Heavy vases filled with fresh flowers lined the walls and in between them stood members of the castle guard to oversee the event. The Queen’s seat was at the head end of the tables and next to her those prepared for Lord Valentine and his children. It was a great honor to be seated next to the Queen during a banquet but everyone knew that it was little more than cold politeness in the case of the Morgenstern family.

Maryse, Alec’s mother, had made sure that his and Jace’s garments were free of stains and loose threads before she had let them go to the feast. They were early, but the other guests would arrive soon and there was a nervous buzzing in the air as the servants tried to arrange everything to perfection. Just as Jace was soothing Alec’s grumbling stomach by promising that he could already smell the thick creamy soup and the roasted potatoes from the kitchen twelve servant boys came into the hall, each carrying a jug of wine and one of water. They went to stand behind the chairs, six on each side, and turned into statues until the room was finally starting to fill. It was custom for all the guests to gather in the hall and wait for the Queen to arrive, who had to be the last one to enter the room and the first one to sit. Sitting down before the Queen did was considered a grave insult and had cost a foreign visitor more than just his good reputation a few years ago. Jace held his breath when Lord Valentine stepped through the large doors, followed by his odd son and finally, Lady Clarissa.

She wore a delicate green dress, embroidered with silver stars that twinkled in the light of the candles. She had removed her veil and her hair was cascading down her shoulders and back in thick waves as red as the morning sun. Around her head, like a fine crown, she wore a band of gold and green that made her look even more like a princess. Jace swallowed dryly. He wanted to tell Alec that he’d been right and Clarissa clearly wasn’t hideous, but it seemed he had temporarily lost the ability to speak. She had already taken her place behind her chair when he finally managed to tear his eyes away to throw a quick look at her brother. Jonathan wore garments in a matching green but they looked far less noble on him. His face was contorted in the same angry, haunted look Jace had noticed when he had first seen him upon their arrival. If he was grateful for being here he absolutely made no attempt at showing it.

Only a few minutes passed before the Queen arrived, followed by her two maids who carried the train of her dress until she had taken her seat. She waited a moment and then waved her hand invitingly to signal that the feast could begin. Immediately the hall was filled with the sound of dozens of chairs being moved at once when all the other guests took their seats. The servants rushed to the tables and started filling the goblets with wine or water – whatever was desired. Jace took his seat next to Alec, as always, already looking over at the Lady Clarissa again. She sat in dignified silence, staring at the plate before her while her brother was throwing venomous looks around the room, as if to encourage the knights to gaze at his sister in an inappropriate manner. (Much like the way Jace was looking at her.)

“You need to stop staring,” Alec hissed grumpily and gave Jace’s thigh a slap under the table. Although it was the last thing he wanted to do Jace turned away from the lady to face Alec with a sigh.  
“She is not from this world, Alec, I tell you,” he said quietly, helping himself to one of the wine goblets in front of them. “She has the beauty of a goddess and the grace of an angel---”  
Alec made a sound at the back of his throat that sounded like the cook’s cat was about to throw up. “Spare me, please,” he begged, his mood clearly not on the same heights as Jace’s. He was rarely as thrilled about events or visitors at the castle as Jace was, but the way he behaved tonight was a new kind of disgruntled still.

“You need not worry, Alec,” said Jace, who believed to know the reason for Alec’s sour mood. “This affair will be over before you know it, and we will forget about it for another seven years. It won’t be _Isabelle_.”  
Alec shifted uncomfortably in his chair. “I don’t want it to be mother or father either. Or _anyone_ I hold dear,” he said, throwing Jace a look that seemed almost shy.  
Jace smiled and reached over to curl his fingers around Alec’s wrist. “If there is a force more powerful than a dragon’s dark magic in this world then it is _your love_. It will protect us all. I am not worried.” That seemed to put Alec at ease for a little while and they proceeded to enjoy the food and the wine until the Queen rose from her chair and all chatter died in the hall.

All eyes fell on her, except for Jace’s, which quickly darted over to Clarissa. A few potatoes and vegetables lay on her plate, half eaten. She had either helped herself to a second serving or she had eaten very little. Next to hers, her brother’s plate was completely empty and clean. It seemed Jonathan had not touched the food offered to him at all.  
“I thank you all for this joyous feast. However dire the reason for our coming together we must celebrate the peace and prosperity it brings to our beautiful kingdom. Rest now and use the day tomorrow wisely, for it may be your last,” the Queen spoke with her usual sharp tone, though Jace thought there was a hint of kindness in it.

Her words were always the same when she announced what they called the _Day of Life_. It was a tradition the royal family had introduced not long after the Morgensterns had forged their pact with the dragon. As every seven years a sacrifice was chosen to die a ritual for this had been implemented. It would start with the banquet to welcome the guests – (the banquet at the castle was often mirrored by smaller feasts or celebrations in the villages) – and followed by the Day of Life. On this day no man, woman or child had to work or do something that he or she did not want to do. This included the Queen’s servants and guards, however many of them were loyal enough to her to fulfill their duties nonetheless.

The day was meant as an opportunity to enjoy life and to spend time with loved ones, in case the following day would reveal your early demise. The next day, you see, was the day _the Oracle_ would appear. On this day the name of the sacrifice was revealed to the guardians of the dragon, who then announced it to the court. In some cases the person was close to the Alicante and the castle and could easily be found, in other cases the Queen’s guard had to ride into all corners of the kingdom to find him or her. Either way only three days could pass before the dragon expected its sacrifice to be brought to the _Hallowed Caves_. If this number of days was exceeded the pact would break and the dragon freed.

Jace watched the Queen leave the hall, accompanied by her maids and guards, and drank up his wine. The Morgensterns still sat in their chairs, almost looking a little unsure of what to do now.  
“Do you have something you want to do tomorrow?” Alec’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. Jace turned to him. Alec’s cheeks had gained a light pink color from the wine and he looked far less worried than he had before the feast. Jace shrugged.  
“I think I will decide that tomorrow,” he said and winked at him before looking back at head end of the tables. His heart made a small jump when he found Clarissa’s chair empty. Her father and brother were still there, making no attempt to participate in any of the conversations happening around them.  
“Do you want to ride to the lake?” Alec asked but Jace didn’t respond. He got up from his chair and placed a hand on Alec’s shoulder absent-mindedly.  
“I will see you tomorrow,” he said before rushing out of the hall without looking back. Alec’s gaze followed him out through the door, hazel eyes glistening in the warm light of the candles.

* * *

There was no trace of the Lady Clarissa as Jace rushed through the hallways, listening for footsteps or voices. Where would she go, leaving behind her father and her brother, in a strange place like this? He was just about losing hope when his gaze fell into the courtyard. There, at the foot of the large fountain that was shaped like their beloved Angel Raziel, sat Clarissa. Her green dress spilled over the edge of the fountain onto the grass like a waterfall, the stars embroidered on it glistening in the moonlight. Her white hand was dipped into the water, causing the surface to curl in small waves. When she moved her feet Jace saw that she had taken off her shoes and dropped them somewhere into the grass. All of a sudden he felt ashamed for having followed her like that and for watching her out of the shadows. He tried to back away quietly when her voice reached his ears.

“I know you’re there,” she said quietly and yet loud enough to be heard through the courtyard. “Come join me.”  
Alec’s voice in his head was telling him to stay away, to apologize and politely excuse himself, but there was something _magical_ about Clarissa, something that made it impossible not to follow her invitation.

With careful steps he walked down the narrow stairs and into the courtyard to where she sat. She looked up at him with curiosity and something akin to defiance. For a moment Jace wondered if she had expected her brother.  
“Forgive me, my Lady, I did not mean to spy on you,” he said, bowing his head before her.  
“You do not have to treat me like royalty,” was her response, which made Jace look at her in surprise.  
“I am not a daughter of a king or a duke. My father is called _Lord_ , but he is not actually a lord. We do not have noble blood,” she explained, meanwhile her hand still brushed through the water of the fountain.  
“I was merely trying to be polite,” Jace said, not knowing what else to say.  
“It is appreciated,” Clarissa said with a smile. “You are one of the knights, are you not? I can tell by your garments.”  
Jace looked down at his shirt as if he was seeing it for the first time. “Yes, my Lady. I was knighted last year,” he replied, not without pride.

“Tell me, knight, how will you spend your day tomorrow? Do you have a family to be with? A _lover_ , perhaps?” Clarissa asked, curiosity apparently getting the better of her manners. Jace found he did not mind her bluntness.  
“I don’t know yet, to be honest,” he admitted. Briefly he thought about telling her about Alec and Isabelle, about Maryse and Sir Robert, but something held him back.  
“I know I should be grateful that my family is safe from becoming sacrifices, but sometimes I envy all of you. It must be nice to spend a whole day doing what you want and loving you who love without feeling guilty about it.” There was a strange sadness in Clarissa’s eyes that made Jace wish he could reach out and pull her in a tight embrace, but of course he refrained from doing that. That would have been entirely inappropriate.  
“What will _you_ do tomorrow?” he asked instead.  
She shrugged softly. “I might ride out to see the lands surrounding the castle. It is not often that I get a chance to see the people and the places so far away from where I live. I am alone often but this Day of Life.. it is always the _loneliest_ day for me.”

Once more Jace realized how little he knew about the Morgenstern family. They lived in seclusion, away from villages and towns, and were only ever seen when it was time for the sacrifice. Now that Clarissa had said it Jace could see that it had to be a lonely life. Her brother might have been her only friend.  
“Would you like some company on your trip?” Jace asked before he could think the better of it.  
Clarissa looked up at him with honest surprise in her eyes but immediately her entire face lit up with a smile. “I would love that!”

* * *

Jace felt dizzy when he went back to the hall. Clarissa had told him that she was expected to go back to her quarters and they had quickly agreed to meet by the stables the next day, three hours before noon. Jace had promised to prepare a horse for her, as the one she had come with would still need rest after their long journey. Excited to tell Alec about this he headed for where he had sat during the feast but found his and Alec’s chair empty. Alec must have gone to bed already. Jace felt a pang of disappointment even though he had been the one to abandon Alec first. He would have to tell him about his encounter with Clarissa in the morning. Not interested in spending the rest of his night in the company of drunken knights and Jonathan’s uncanny looks Jace decided to retreat as well. He already knew that he wasn’t going to be able to sleep, but he at least had to try.

* * *

Alec was not around for breakfast in the hall either and Jace looked for him in vain when he searched in the weapon’s room, the kitchen and finally his quarters. Perhaps Alec had simply started his day off early to spend as much time with his family as possible. Jace couldn’t help feeling disappointed again – this time not because he was denied a chance to tell his best friend about Clarissa, but because he realized he had expected Alec to want to at least spend part of the day with _him_. After all, they had been friends for almost all their lives and Jace was confident in saying that he knew and trusted nobody as much as Alec. Looking for Alec had cost him quite some time and since he was nowhere to be found Jace quickly abandoned his search and hurried to the stables to prepare the horses.

Clarissa arrived, as arranged, perfectly on time. Much to Jace’s surprise she wore not a dress but brown linen pants tucked neatly into a pair of boots, much like Jace’s, and a white shirt that was so large on her it had to be her brother’s.  
“I’ve told you before, I am not of noble blood. I may ride like a man if I so please,” she announced when she saw his curious gaze and that was all she was willing to say on the matter. Jace only felt his appreciation of her grow.

Together they rode down the streets of Alicante until they reached the city walls and led their horses onto the road that would lead them east to the next big town. About half an hour after they’d left the gates of Alicante behind them, Clarissa strayed from the road and galloped over the fresh green meadows towards the forest. Jace called after her but she made no attempts to wait for him and so, although he spurred his horse on as much as he could, he did not catch up with her until they had reached the edge of Brocelind Forest.  
“Where have you learned to ride like that?” Jace called out to her once his horse had slowed its steps to walk calmly next to hears.  
“I have a lot of time on my hands,” Clarissa replied curtly. She raised a hand and pointed towards the forest. “Tell me, what lies between these trees?”  
Jace followed her gaze. The trees grew dense quickly inside the forest and despite the sun standing high on the sky her light was swallowed by shadows deep between them. “There are many tales about Brocelind Forest,” Jace began, uncertain what it was Clarissa wanted to hear. “Some say a warlock lives deep into the woods, others swear the animals speak our tongue if you spend three nights in their company.”

They rode along the edge of the forest. Clarissa chuckled softly and Jace thought it was the sweetest sound he had ever heard.  
“Animals always speak our tongue if you care to listen to them,” she said mysteriously. Jace felt the urge to ask but decided that she was only jesting. He would not make a fool of himself by taking it seriously.  
“There are stories about the dragon too,” he said instead, watching her red curls jump at every step of her horse. “Some say it dropped a great treasure here, but nobody has ever found it. I have also heard stories that say the dragon was born in the depths of Brocelind Forest---”  
“Ridiculous,” said Clarissa, her voice suddenly void of all joy. “A massive beast like that could never fit between those trees.” And without another word she dug her heels into her horse’s side and galloped away. Jace felt like a fool. What was he thinking, telling her tales about the dragon when she knew more about it than all of Idris combined? These stories could have impressed a peasant girl but surely not the daughter of the _Dragonlord_ himself.

Following her as quickly as he could Jace tried to come up with words to apologize but Clarissa did not seem interested when he finally caught up. She had found the road again and stopped at a crossing that split it into three paths.  
“This is the way to the Dragon’s Caves, is it not?” she asked, pointing towards the one that led to the sea.  
“It is,” Jace said with a slight feeling of dread in his stomach. “It is not safe to travel there, my Lady..”  
Clarissa shook her head, sending her locks flying in every direction. “I have no interest in going there. Those caves do not sound pleasant. Show me something nice. Show me the lake. I haven’t seen its waters in many years.”

Jace followed her wish and they rode to the lake, but the rest of their trip was overshadowed by a darker mood. Jace couldn’t help the feeling that he had somehow insulted Clarissa by talking too much about the dragon and so he did his best to remember all the other legends and tales of this land that he had grown up with. He tried to apologize several times but the words never came over his lips. His concerns were soothed, however, when they arrived at the castle and Clarissa leaned in to place a feather-light kiss on his cheek before rushing off to the castle. Jace smiled like a fool when he returned the horses to the care of one of the stable boys. His heart felt light and strong when he ran up to the castle and headed straight for Alec’s quarters. This time they weren’t empty and Jace smiled even brighter upon seeing Alec sitting on the bed.

“Alec! I came to find you this morning but you were out! You won’t believe where I have been,” Jace began, excitedly, but his vigor faded when he saw Alec’s face. He looked grim and serious, like the complete opposite of how Jace felt. “What’s happened?” Jace asked, his heart sinking into his stomach.  
“What is it you want, Jace?” was all Alec said. He averted his eyes and brought them back to the book he held in hand. Jace hadn’t noticed it until now. It was a large leather-bound edition of _The Legends of Idris_ that Jace knew from the library. He was surprised to see that Alec had taken it to his room; usually the librarian was very strict when it came to borrowing books from the Queen’s personal collection.  
“I wanted to see you..” Jace said, bringing his attention back to the here and now.

Alec huffed. “ _Now_ you want to see me,” he said darkly. He turned the page and revealed a beautifully drawn image of a large brown dragon. Jace recognized the drawing and the tale it belonged to immediately – it was the story of the Morgenstern family.  
“Why are you angry with me?” Jace asked, puzzled by his friend’s behavior. Alec closed the book so violently it made Jace jump and sent dust flying everywhere.  
“I’m not angry, Jace. I’m _disappointed_ ,” Alec got up from his bed and put the book down, far less careful than he probably should have been. “But I suppose it is my own fault for expecting more. I should not be surprised that you would rather spend the day in the company of a beautiful girl than with.. _your friends_.” For a fleeting moment Jace thought Alec had wanted to say something else, but the impression faded quickly.  
He stared at him with big eyes and his lips slightly parted. Guilt made his chest contract painfully. What a fool he had been! This day was meant to be spent with your loved ones and the people you cared about the most and Jace had ditched his best friend to be with a complete _stranger_. After all, no matter how lovely Clarissa was, that was all she was.  
“Forgive me, I did not think---”  
“I know you didn’t,” Alec sat back down, his anger suddenly depleted. “It doesn’t matter now. There are more important matters to talk about.” Jace wanted to protest, say that there was nothing more important to him than Alec, but he was rendered speechless by the words that followed.

“I followed Lord Valentine’s son today, Jonathan. I had a bad feeling about him ever since you spoke of it last night,” Alec stroked carefully over the cover of the book next to him, as if to apologize for his previous treatment of it. “You were right. There is something very strange about him.”  
That instantly grabbed Jace’s attention. “What happened?”  
“It is not one thing that happened, but several smaller peculiarities. I have watched him last night before he returned to his quarters and all day today before I went to the library about an hour ago.” Alec lowered his voice, as if he feared someone might eavesdrop outside his door. “He never eats or drinks when in company. He doesn’t talk, from what I can tell, although once I heard him hiss at one of the servants; but I could have sworn it sounded like a foreign language - or like an _animal’s_ attempt to speak our language. And after lunch I swear I saw him carry a bucket of something to his room that looked like raw meat. As if he’d stolen it from the _hounds_.”  
Jace felt a chill run down his spine. Alec’s account sounded like a scary story but for some reason he could very easily imagine Jonathan doing all the things he had just heard.

“What are you saying?” he asked, his voice merely a whisper.  
Alec picked up the book and held it out to Jace. When Jace reached for it, for a moment their fingers brushed against each other.  
“The story doesn’t say how the warlock’s spell worked. It only tells us that it bound the dragon to the family and that it has been enslaved ever since. Jace- I don’t think Jonathan is _bound_ to the beast. I think he might _be_ the dragon.”

After that there was no more thinking about doing anything other than speculating about Jonathan and the nature of the warlock’s spell. It seemed insane and yet Jace wanted to believe it whole-heartedly. It all fit together too flawlessly to be a coincidence. No one saw the Morgenstern family regularly and so nobody knew them well. It would have been an easy thing for Valentine and his father and grandfather before him to claim that Jonathan was their son or nephew when really he was the _dragon_ forced to live in human shape. He would never age or die and all it took to keep him this way was a blood sacrifice every seven years. Jace had always wondered how killing one person was enough to soothe the dragon’s rage over being enslaved for years to follow. Perhaps that was not the purpose of these sacrifices. Perhaps they were needed to feed the spell that was still in the workings, perhaps the magic that protected all of them was darker than they’d thought. He tried to remember the ceremony seven years ago and if he had noticed Jonathan being there, but Maryse had held on to him and Alec so hard in fear of losing them that he had barely seen anything over her arms.

They talked until the sun had sunk outside the window and Jace realized that they had missed dinner. Alec yawned heartily and Jace, who had sunk into the chair by the wall, took it as his sign to leave.  
“I will take my leave of you. Maybe tomorrow will bring some answers to our many questions.” Before he left he walked over to the bed and placed both his hands on Alec’s shoulders, one on each side. He leaned down and kissed his cheeks, first the left, then the right, and finally his forehead. “Forgive me for abandoning you, dear friend,” he said softly, smiling when he saw the surprise in Alec’s face. “I let youthful desire get the better of me. There is _no one_ I care more about than you, and this day – it should have been yours.”  
He was rewarded with a smile as Alec curled his hands around his wrists and gave them a gentle squeeze. “Go get some rest, Jace. Exhaustion has made you sentimental.”

* * *

The next day the whole castle was dipped in silence for most of the time. There was a nervous tension in the air and the general atmosphere was rather gloomy. The day of the Oracle had come and that meant by tonight the whole kingdom would know whose blood would buy them another seven years of peace. All tables had been removed from the Great Hall and the castle gates had been opened for those who would come from the city to bear witness to the ritual. Despite its terrifying purpose Jace liked this part of the ceremony the most - mostly because of the _Oracle_. It was neither a person nor an object, as many believed, but a free spirit of nature and magic that took the shape of an animal – a different one each time – and spoke to the guardians of the dragon only. It had to be summoned through a magic chant and only then revealed the name of the next sacrifice.

The day went by fast and before Jace knew it was time to put on the festive robes again and join the others in the Great Hall. The amount of people that had gathered was impressive but this year Jace didn’t worry about seeing the spectacle in all its glory. The knights were situated near the Queen along the short side of the hall with a direct view of the space in the middle that had been cleared for the Morgenstern family. Jace felt a warm hand curl around his wrist shortly and looked to his left to see that Alec had joined him. His touch disappeared as quickly as it had come, leaving Jace’s skin cold where his fingers had rested.  
“We will be alright,” Jace promised but Alec only gave him a weak smile. From across the hall Jace could see Alec’s sister, Isabelle, waving at them and he raised his hand shortly to greet her back. Maryse stood next to her, her hand on her daughter’s shoulder. She, too, gave him a warm smile. Jace could only imagine how terrifying it had to be for a mother to fear for her children’s lives every time the sacrifice knocked on their doors.

By the time Valentine Morgenstern and his children entered the hall the sun had begun to set and painted the castle in a deep red light. Jace’s eyes immediately searched for Clarissa. She walked into the hall after her father, her eyes cast down. For the occasion she had chosen a silken dress of a light grey color and her face was once more covered by a veil like that of a grieving widow. Together with her flaming hair she looked like a painting of fire and ash. Behind her came Jonathan, dressed in dark robes similar to those of his father, the same heaviness in his movements that Jace had noticed before. The hall fell silent when the doors closed behind the Morgensterns and they assumed their places in the middle of the room.

A sharp pain in Jace’s chest made him aware that he’d been holding his breath and he let it out in a sigh that seemed to echo from the walls. The Queen, who had come into the hall even before the dragon’s guardians for this occasion, stood up from her seat and all eyes turned to her. She, too, wore a grey and black dress that made her look older than usually.  
“May the Oracle speak and reveal the name of the brave soul who will give their life for their kingdom, for their brothers and sisters, for their children. May the Angel be with us all.” A murmur rose in the hall when every man and woman present repeated the Queen’s last words as it was custom. Jace heard Alec’s voice right next to him and felt the urge to reach out to him but refrained.

Clarissa stepped forward and raised a candle Jace hadn’t realized she’d been holding. It made her veil shimmer in the flickering light. She raised her voice and began to sing in a language Jace didn’t understand. It woke memories in his mind that he had been trying to reach all day, memories of the last ritual he had witnessed and the last time he had seen the Oracle speak. A woman had sung then, too, but it couldn’t have been Clarissa. It must have been her _mother_. Somewhere in the back of his mind Jace wondered how her death had come to pass. Clarissa’s singing was beautiful but sad, like the lament of a mother mourning over her child’s grave, and Jace closed his eyes when he felt tears burning in them.

“Jace..”  
He didn’t open them again until he heard Alec’s whisper right next to his ear. Clarissa had fallen silent. The candles that lit the room seemed to grow darker until the hall was cloaked in shadows and the last remaining rays of the setting sun. Alec breathed in sharply when the first spark of light appeared over Jonathan’s head. It danced around him like a lighting bug or a butterfly, fluttering while growing in size. Everyone in the hall seemed to be holding their breath now, all eyes fixed on the magic spectacle before them. The ball of light grew to the size of a human fist and-

Exploded into a dozen smaller lights. They fell apart like pieces of a broken egg shell and from them hatched a little bird, black as coal with eyes of glowing gold. The bird flew down to sit on Jonathan’s shoulder. It moved its little head just like a normal bird would, tapping on the uneven ground nervously, but there was something about it that was distinctly _magical_. Even in the temples of their Angel Jace had never felt closer to the ancient forces than in this moment.

The bird seemed to whisper something that only Jonathan could hear and before long it pushed itself off of his shoulder and flew into the air, dissolving into a shower of light once more. Jace’s eyes fell back on Jonathan quickly. Valentine’s son had taken his sister’s place now, facing the trembling crowd before him with his dark and emotionless eyes. If he was _upset_ about having to condemn someone to death with his next breath, he did not show it.  
“The dragon demands the sacrifice to be a man.” There were sighs of unveiled relief all throughout the hall, of women and mother’s grasping their daughters, sisters and nieces a little tighter. Across the hall, Maryse closed her arms around her daughter. But Jonathan was not done and when he resumed talking all Jace could hear was a loud buzzing in his head.

“A man who goes by the name _Jace_.”

**Author's Note:**

> I KNOW there's not much Jalec in this yet, but bear with me. I promise there will be a lot more of it in the next chapter. Like, seriously.


End file.
